My New Hot Button: "Social Mobility"

I've been thinking a lot about race and culture and tolerance lately. Especially since the election and inauguration. And as happy as I am for Obama and as excited as I am for the nation (I did vote for the man), I don't agree with a lot of the reasonings I've heard.

For instance, the idea that a black man has been elected president despite his color is flawed and cliche. Too many people hold onto this statement without taking into account what it "really" means or how reasonable the statement really is considering the number of voters in America and all of the different motivations for voting. I would have to say, with all honesty, that for some voters Obama was elected president BECAUSE of his color. I give two reasons for this.

1) Black people want a black president. I can't say it any straighter than that. That's not a racist remark, that's just the truth. I can't blame people for this. If there was a decent white man running for president in a country that had been run exclusively by men of another race I would most likely vote for him. Sadly enough, this was also proven by none other than Howard Stern. I must preface this by reminding the general population that I do not support Howard Stern in any way shape or form and only know of his experiment through NPR. The man is tasteless. But I do have to admit, it was a pretty slick trick. I think when push comes to shove, an election is still a popularity contest. Everybody plays favorites...everybody.

Reason #2) People are sick of white rice. Yes, rice. Try eating white rice, and nothing but white rice for...let's say...200 odd years or so. Not wild rice, not chicken fried rice, not cilantro lime rice, just white rice. There's lots of it, it's all the same, and it's tasteless (but not in the same way as Howard Stern). White rice has been a decent meal supplement, I don't have anything against it per say. I'm just sick of it, and sick of the status quo. Let's change it up a little big. Yes, CHANGE. So many times during campaign season I heard that McCain was just another Bush. I would go further than that. McCain was just another rich old white man. The US has been run by rich old white men for far too long. They are less and less representative of the American people as time passes...except for the 'old' part I guess. Obama brings a lot of diversity with him, not just African American, but diversity at its most....diverse.

"Obama proves that social mobility is improving for black Americans", I read this in a news article somewhere. This is a basic misunderstanding of how social mobility works.

Reason #1) Obama isn't from Detroit. He didn't grow up in the ghetto, on welfare, with a foster mom with no high school diploma. He grew up in Hawaii, raised by his white grandparents and was surrounded by a family that believed in higher education. The expectations placed upon him growing up were that he would continue his education, and that his actions, choices, and speech would be acceptable to a majority of society. Many African Americans in this country are raised with very different expectations. Many are taught from a very young age to give up on education because they'll never make it and it's a white man's game anyway. They are taught that the world is against them and the only way to get ahead it to have the biggest attitude, the biggest gun, the baddest gang. Everything they see in life tends to prove this is true and if they try anything different, they get eaten alive by both sides. Yes, Obama had conflicting cultures he had to deal with and find out who he was but he doesn't really prove anything, in fact, I am a better example of social mobility than he is. I was the poor ignorant country girl that should have gotten pregnant and dropped out.

Reason #2: It is not societys' job to make everyone socially mobile. It is everyones personal job to choose where they want to be and what steps they are willing to take to get there. Society is not going to hold your hand and pat you on the back and open doors for you. Society will judge you based on your family, your fortune, and your education. It always has and it always will. This is true for everyone. There is a give an take involved. Everyone has to take a realistic look and see how much they're willing to adapt to the larger society.

Let's face it. If you choose to speak and dress in a manner that clashes with socially acceptable norms because "you can't get ahead anyway", then it will be a self fulfilling prophecy. Subcultures can be hugely alienating to the general public. If employers feel your attitude, speech, or clothing is too different than the norm, then you are not reaching as many customers as you possibly could and you are not an asset to the company. This is not about racism, it's about money and it's not about color, it's about "flavor". I don't expect that I would be where I am today if I continued wearing plaid polyester pants (I do miss them). Nor should people expect to be socially mobile if they choose to speak in a dialect that only a few subcultures can understand.

I'm not saying people should totally give in to society. It's a strange concept that there is acceptable and unacceptable diversity but that's where we are at. Society will take away your personhood if it gets the chance. Everyone has to decide for themselves what things are worth fighting for and what things are more divisive than they are worth. Barack Hussein Obama has a name which some people find offensive or suspect but it's his name and he's not going to change it. However, you don't see him with his belt buckled under his butt and you don't hear him calling people "dawg" and "homeslice".

Yeah, we'd all like to see society bend to whatever culture we're comfortible with, we'd all like to be socially mobile without meeting any of the expectations of society. Get over it.

And speaking of the 'name' issue I'll say this. There were "Adolf"s before there was Adolf Hitler. I don't blame them for what Hitler did and I don't think they're going to try to massacre an entire race of people because they happen to share a name with some guy they've probably never met. Barack was Hussein before Saddam ever came on the scene. It's just a NAME people. Again, get over it.